Mending
by bluejay
Summary: Superboy can be as protective as the man he was cloned from. The instinct becomes worse especially after a near-death experience. SuperboyxRobin pairing.


Disclaimer: Don't own anyone.  
>Notes: My follow up to Tiger Lily Roar's "Burning" found here: http: /www. fanfiction .net/s/6884037/1/bBurning_b and written with her permission. (To check the link, please remove spaces.)

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><p>He sprinted for the zeta tubes. Dick was shivering in his arms, wind cutting through what must be sensitive skin exposed by the corrosive liquid all over their clothes. Conner gripped the younger boy tighter and ran faster. The cold didn't bother him. But Dick must be feeling every single bite of the chill air.<p>

"We're almost there. Just hang on a little more." He urged his precious burden.

"...H-hanging...as much...as I can..." Dick's voice was weak - almost too soft to hear - but Conner heard him. The fire had been close, _too close, _and if he was a second slower he would've been too late. He would've lost Dick.

"K-Kon..."

"What is it?" He risked a brief glance down at his burden but kept his pace.

"Not...too tight. Gonna...have bruises later..."

He immediately eased his grip, feeling more than hearing the soft sigh coming from Dick. "Sorry."

"S'okay..." The voice trailed into silence.

"Dick? Don't fall asleep! Dick!" He stopped in his tracks in a panic, as the younger boy suddenly fell limp in his arms. Panicked, he tried shaking his boyfriend awake. Flashes from his Cadmus education ran through his mind as he remembered Dick was still bleeding from the head wound and had complained of dizziness a while ago. These were classic symptoms of a concussion, and if the concussion was bad enough, Dick could fall into a coma and not wake up. Conner could _not_ let that happen. "Dick!"

To his relief, Dick stirred. Eyelids fluttered to reveal dulled blue eyes that were still rimmed in irritated red. "Wh-?"

"Stay awake. I'll get you back to the Cave quick." He poured on the speed again, wishing for the nth time that he could fly. Traveling without transport would go faster then.

He almost passed the abandoned phonebooth in his haste.

Gotham wasn't like Metropolis in its narrower streets and dark skies. It rained a lot in Batman's city. And there was always some sort of construction going on, like the entire Gotham was never finished. It was the closer buildings and maze-like qualities of the place that frequently had him getting lost.

"Almost there." He murmured to Dick, shoving aside the 'Out of Order' sign and squeezing the both of them into the cramped booth. A second later and he was tingling inside out, like he had ants crawling just below his skin. The confines of the booth blurred, disappeared, and Mount Justice's transport room appeared - along with the expectant faces of Wally and Artemis. Those same faces became surprised then turned into twin smirks as the last echoes of the computer's greeting faded.

Conner didn't bother waiting until the ants under his skin fully faded. He gripped his boyfriend closer and ran for the showers.

Four months. Four months it had taken him to develop super-speed. Four exhausting months of training with the Flashes and Superman until he could finally stop himself without skidding, until he could distinguish buildings within the blurring of super-speed. And it was all worth it if he could bring his boyfriend to safety within five minutes like this.

Dick's legs were trembling and too weak to support him when Conner set him down gently. But he was standing when Conner let go. And he probably won't be standing anymore in two seconds though.

"Wait here. Don't move." Conner told him and went to start the shower. Dick had been bracing himself against the wall with one shaky hand while the other cradled his head. But Dick was still covered in accelerants and Conner heard the very light squeak when Dick's hand slipped. He sped back just in time to catch Dick when the younger boy started to collapse. "I've got you. I've still got you." He reassured his boyfriend who had begun trembling again.

"Hand slipped..."

"I know. Here," with Dick's hands on his shoulders, Conner bent down and gently stripped the younger boy of his wet clothes. The designer shirt came off first and-

-fabric squelched in his fist as the red blotches spanning Dick's torso were revealed. And the spots didn't stop there. There were marks running down his arms, his legs and he could see how the liquid was starting to eat its way through the dermis layer on Dick's skin in places-

Forget gentle. He had to wash the liquid off _now._ Conner tore off the rest of Dick's clothes and plunged them both under the steaming hot shower.

"Gaaahh!" Dick flailed the moment the hot water hit him. He tried to leap away, but Conner was there holding him in place. Still, he twisted right and left trying to dislodge himself.

"Dick! Dick, it's me. It's ok. It's just water."

The squirming stopped. Dick lifted his head to blink glazed blue eyes at him. "Kon...?"

Conner nodded, running fingers through the younger boy's hair to get rid of the chemicals. "We need to get this stuff off you."

"S'hot..."

"I know. It has to be." He continued combing Dick's hair until the oiliness was gone. Then he gently turned Dick so the younger boy's back was to him and reached down to brace Dick's hands on the wall. "Keep still. I won't hurt you."

He felt Dick's knees lock, his entire body trembling. But he remained standing. Conner stripped himself quickly - he didn't want to get any more of the corrosive liquid on his boyfriend's sensitive skin. When he was satisfied the chemical was washed away, he twisted the shower knob until the water cut off then hauled the semi-conscious Dick towards the towel rack. The shivering increased as cooler air brushed heated skin so Conner pulled him close to share body heat.

Dick's head wound started bleeding again while Conner was drying him off, spotting the towel with red stains. Conner suppressed the urge to strangle something and kept working on wiping down his boyfriend. He had just secured a towel over his own waist - he'd finished Dick first before covering himself - when Wally called from outside the showers.

"Hey, you do know the communal shower isn't just for doing the hokey."

Dick brought his head up, frowning in confusion. "Wally? What...?"

"I'll explain later." Conner grumbled, bending down to hoist his boyfriend in his arms. "We need to get to the Medlab."

Wally was smirking when Conner stepped out. "Now now, don't blame me if Bats find out-" the smirk faded, green eyes zooming on the red splotches on Dick's skin. "Whoa. What happened? Those look like- what's that smell?"

"Gasoline." Conner answered gruffly. "Mixed with something. Get Artemis and meet us at the Medlab."

Wally's jaw snapped shut. He gave a curt nod and dashed off, leaving Conner and Dick to run to the Medlab on their own.

Dick stirred into coherency again. "Kon?"

"I'm here." Dick's eyes were shutting with sleep but Conner couldn't let him do that. Not until they were sure Dick wouldn't fall into a coma. "I'm right here. Don't fall asleep yet."

"Sorry..."

The whisper made him glance down at his charge in confusion. "For what?"

"Been a..._disastrous _date..."

"It's not your fault, Dick," he said hurriedly, "don't ever think it was your fault."

"But I-"

"There you two are!" exclaimed Wally's voice. He was standing just outside the door to the Medlab. "Arty's got the medicated cream and IV out. I brought some clothes for both of you and Bats is on his way. So get in there!"

"Batman?" Dick struggled to get out of Conner's grip.

"Easy, easy," Wally zoomed over to help hold him down. "I said he's on his way. Couldn't get this past Bats when it's mission day."

Conner hid his wince at the mention of mission day. He'd almost forgotten he and Dick were supposed to report back to Mount Justice for a briefing with Batman. Not that they'd always be given a new mission during mission day. Batman had decided that taking at least one day a week brought the team closer than leaving them scattered all over the world would. And Conner had to admit, it helped. It helped that they each had one day to look forward to every week to meet up with the rest of their team. It helped that now they thought of each other as family instead of simply colleagues like the Justice League does.

Together, Wally and Conner ran into the Medlab and laid Dick on one of the empty beds.

"Here, you set this up," Artemis ordered, appearing at their side and shoving a dextrose bag and IV needle to Wally. "I'll take care of the burns." She jerked her head to another of the empty Medlab beds. "Clothes are over there. Get dressed while you still can."

Conner nodded and grabbed one of the two piles of clothes the archer indicated. The other pile was obviously for someone smaller than him and he didn't bother to touch it. He'll help Dick get dressed later. He paused halfway to the bathroom and asked, "What about his head wound?"

"I'll handle it." Even though he'd expected the gravelly voice, he didn't expect to hear it so soon. All three spun to face the door where Batman was just striding past, his tone brooked no arguments. "Continue what you were doing."

Artemis obeyed and smeared cold cream on Dick's red splotches, ignoring the younger boy as he hissed at the chill. Wally was holding Dick's limp wrist, green eyes wide with nervousness. Conner took a step in his direction - he remembered Wally's fear of needles - but Batman beat him to it. The Dark Knight swept the IV needle from stiff fingers and jabbed it into an exposed vein on Dick's hand.

"Oww..." Dick moaned. "Did you have to push it in so hard...?"

"I'm not Agent A." Batman replied deadpan.

"Thank goodness for that..." a weak grin.

"I can still ground you."

Dick fell silent, but a lopsided smile still played on his lips.

"Kid Flash, get an oxygen mask." Batman ordered Wally who jumped to do his bidding.

Satisfied that his boyfriend was in good hands, Conner continued to the bathroom to change. Wally must have gone into his room because the clothes the speedster had brought were his own black shirt and cargo pants. He hadn't made it a habit to lock his room when he was going out. He dressed quickly and when he came out, the first thing he noticed was the silence. Wally and Artemis were gone but Batman remained. He was currently standing beside the bed where Dick laid, eyes closed and an oxygen mask over his nose and mouth.

"He's asleep." Batman answered his unspoken question.

"And the concussion?"

"Mild. He'll be fine with a few days of rest."

Conner didn't realize there was a tight band around his chest until it eased. His boyfriend was going to be okay. He gave a relieved sigh as he felt his lungs finally breathe easy. "I...thank you."

Batman nodded, indicating the chair beside Dick's bed. "Tell me what happened."

"There was a fire in the old theater we were in." He reported, taking the seat and reaching out to hold his boyfriend's hand. "Dick had gone to the bathroom but he took too long and I got worried." He shook his head, trying to dislodge the worry he'd felt at his boyfriend's delay and the horror he saw once he found the younger boy. It was one of the worst half-hours he'd felt when he didn't know whether to start panicking or to have faith in his boyfriend - because Dick was too experienced to know to send out a message if he was alright; and if he couldn't, then he was in trouble. Then when Conner finally heard the muffled voice... "I found him tied up in the underground garage, about to be burned alive."

"And the rashes?"

"He was soaked in some chemical mixed with gasoline."

"Butane." Wally answered for him, coming back in with the rest of the team in tow. "I checked the clothes that you left in the shower room. Tested positive for the presence of butane."

"I see." Batman turned on his heel and was at the door in two strides. "I'll send Dr. Midnite over later to check on Robin. You've got a good handle on things here." He turned to the team, "The rest of you, I want you to investigate that theater. Whatever evidence you find, I'll hand over to the GCPD. Neither the team nor the Justice League need to be involved in this case. Robin will be out of commission for two weeks."

Final instructions done, he swept out of the Medlab. Conner hid a smile to himself. When something life-threatening happens, Dick would always have nightmares afterwards; and both Bruce and Conner had learned through experience that Dick sleeps better if someone was there to watch over him during these instances. By leaving the room, Batman had basically told Conner to stay with Dick and stand watch.

"Looks like we have our work cut out for us." Wally grumbled and was slapped on the shoulder by Artemis. "Ow!"

"Quit whining. Robin could've _died, _you know."

Wally immediately became subdued. "Yeah, I know." He glanced up to meet Conner's gaze. "Glad you were there to save him, Supey."

Conner blinked and smiled. "Yeah, me too."

Kaldur stepped forward to take a seat across Conner. "I'm afraid I am...out of the hoop, or so you say. Please, tell us what happened this afternoon."

Conner winced and glanced back to Dick. "I can't really say; I didn't see much. Dick fought with the arsonist though."

"And we will ask him later, when he has awakened." Kaldur leaned forward. "Right now, we only have one witness, and that is you. Whatever you say might be able to help us."

Conner looked at him, met the gazes of his other teammates and nodded. Then he began telling them of what happened in their date, his thumb rubbing circles over Dick's hand all the while.


End file.
